SOUTH AFRICA’S MOST SUCCESSFUL RACING SERIES PREPARES FOR 24TH CONSECUTIVE SEASON

Date:03 Mar 2020

Author Type:Press Release

Author:Volkswagen South Africa

Source:Volkswagen South Africa

Series will be known as the Oettinger Polo Cup

Other series partners to still include the likes of Falken, Ferodo and Total

Eight-event series scheduled to kick off at Pretoria’s Zwartkops Raceway on 14 March 2020

Uitenhage. South Africa’s most successful racing
series will commence for the 24th consecutive season when no less
than 25 Volkswagen Polo GTI’s line up on the starting grid of the Zwartkops
Raceway on Saturday, 14 March 2020. Although much of the series’ successful
ingredients will remain the same for 2020, a number of things have also
changed, such as the name of the title sponsor.

“We are happy to announce that the world-renowned Volkswagen tuning
company, Oettinger is officially launching in South Africa and that they will
be joining the series as the headline sponsor,” commented Mike Rowe, head of
Volkswagen Motorsport. The eight-round series will therefore be known as the
Oettinger Polo Cup.

The Oettinger brand is officially returning to South Africa thanks to
the efforts of Universal Healthcare’s team owner and driver Dr Johan Pretorius
who acquired the South African rights to the famous Oettinger brand late in
2019. “Oettinger has been famous for tuning Volkswagens for more than 70 years.
The brand is synonymous with Volkswagen and it’s a pleasure for us to bring the
Oettinger brand back to South Africa,” commented Dr Pretorius. “For us, it was
the perfect fit to get involved with the country’s most competitive racing
series which happen to consist of 25 Volkswagen Polo GTI’s and we hope that by
us and Volkswagen joining forces, the Oettinger Polo Cup will continue to go
from strength to strength,” added Pretorius.

The 2019 title sponsor, Falken Tyres will continue to support the series
as the official tyre partners and all competing Volkswagen Polos will be shod
with Falken’s slick racing rubber. “We are excited to continue our mutually
beneficial relationship with the Oetttinger Polo Cup in 2020,” said Riaz
Haffejee, CEO of Sumitomo Rubber SA (Sumitomo Dunlop), the company responsible
for the Falken Tyre brand in South Africa. “The series provides us with the
perfect platform to showcase these quality products and we expect to see more
of the same this season.”

All competing Volkswagen Polo GTI’s will not only be sporting identical
rubber, but they will also be powered by the same fuel courtesy of Total and
its Excellium brand. “Motorsport is all about creating a winning image, but it
also provides an opportunity for real-world testing. To see so many high
performance Volkswagen Polos performing at their peak is exactly what we want
to see at Total and we’ll continue to follow the series with great interest in
2020,” said Sanjeev Sheosanker, Retail Fuels Sales Manager at Total SA.
Stopping power for the field of Volkswagen Polos will once again be provided by
Ferodo who continue their long-lasting relationship with the series.

The talents of
25 of the country’s best up-and-coming racing drivers will be on display
alongside the products of all the sponsors involved when the lights go green to
signal the start of the 2020 Oettinger Polo Cup on Saturday, 14 March 2020.
“The Oettinger Polo Cup is extremely competitive where fractions of a second
could mean the difference between winning and losing,” continued Rowe. “In such
an environment, it is crucial that all the elements that make up a race car
work seamlessly together. With that as a backdrop, we are delighted that
quality brands such as Oettinger, Falken and Total choose to partner with
Volkswagen to showcase their products and brands. It will also no doubt ensure
that each round of the Oettinger Polo Cup remains to be a highlight on the
racing calendar, starting with Zwartkops on 14 March 2020,” he concluded.